JUSTICE IN ZIMBABWE 17 ____________________________________________________________________ bruises, but fled the area. The magistrate became the latest victim of the campaign of violence in the Gokwe area. Scores of teachers reportedly fled the town after ruling party militants descended on schools, assaulting the teachers they accuse of working for the opposition.19 In January 2002 more than 150 ZANU (PF) supporters besieged the Bindura Magistrates Court and forced it to close. They demanded the removal of three magistrates whom they accused of sympathising with and supporting MDC and whites in the area. They said the magistrates should go to Harare and be employed by Morgan Tsvangirai, and if they refused to go they would be driven away. The riot squad eventually moved in and quelled the disturbance. 20 In February 2002 a magistrate, Godfrey Macheyo, sentenced war veteran leader Joseph Chinotimba to an effective term of imprisonment of two months for illegally possessing a firearm without a licence. A crowd of about 200 ZANU (PF) youths who were packed into the courtroom threatened to deal with the magistrate soon after he had pronounced sentence. Riot police were on stand by to deal with any violence that broke out. 21 In August 2002 Walter Chikwanha, the Chipinge magistrate, was dragged from his courtroom by a group of war veterans and assaulted at the government complex after he dismissed an application by the State to remand in custody five MDC officials. Sources said the magistrate sustained serious injuries. The attack allegedly took place in full view of the police, who did not try to stop the assault.22 The magistrate sustained broken ribs and a fractured collar bone as a result of this assault. Several other court officials were also assaulted and one had to be hospitalised. The magistrate was then paraded round town and made to chant ZANU (PF) slogans. The magistrate had previously granted bail to these five people after they had spent several days in custody on charges of malicious injury to property arising out of the burning of three tractors belonging to the District Development Fund. The day after their release on bail the five had been re-arrested by the police and held for a few days before being brought back to court. The magistrate released them on bail on the same conditions as he had imposed previously. The identity of the assailants must be known